Wisconsin

Wisconsin women’s hockey dominates vs. No. 3 Minnesota, expects a tough game Sunday

Published

1 year ago

February 8, 2025

Wisconsin women’s hockey dominates vs. No. 3 Minnesota, expects a tough game Sunday

MADISON – On senior day, against one of the best women’s hockey teams in the country, Wisconsin had a chance to wrap up its 10^th WCHA regular-season championship Saturday.

Might as well seal it all with a rout.

“I think regardless of the outcome today, there’s already so many emotions with senior day across the board, but I think we did a really good job of focusing in once the game started and kind of shutting those emotions out,” senior center Casey O’Brien said after the top-ranked Badgers erupted for an 8-2 victory over No. 3 Minnesota.

“And then I think right away, in the first period, we like felt just like we were playing so much lighter than maybe the past few weekends, and everything was clicking. And so there’s really no better way to end senior day than with a regular-season title. And so I think we’re all just happy that we kind of found our game again and played really well today.”

Wisconsin (28-1-2, 22-1-2 WCHA) suffered its only loss in November to No. 2 Ohio State. The past two weekends, though, the Badgers have played to a 2-2 tie with St. Cloud State and edged Minnesota Duluth, 2-1, in a pair of games, the second in overtime.

“Sometimes you kind of get the dog days of winter, and the season’s so long, so sometimes that just catches up too,” O’Brien said of the previous two weekends. “But I also think, like St. Cloud and Duluth play a really physical, really hard game, and so sometimes that slows the game down for us and can get us frustrated. And so I think things just opened up a little bit today for us.”

Wisconsin’s Casey O’Brien, Laila Edwards lead nation in scoring

Twelve Badgers figured in the scoring. Junior right wing Laila Edwards got UW on the scoreboard first at 4:01 of the first period and, like O’Brien, finished with two goals. Edwards added two assists, and junior left wing Kirsten Simms also had a four-point game with four assists.

Edwards is the leading goal scorer in NCAA Division I with 28 plus 31 assists, and O’Brien leads overall scoring with 62 points on 20 goals and 42 assists.

“I thought the energy level was high being senior day, knowing there’s a lot of energy in the building,” coach Mark Johnson said. “So can we get off to a good start from the get-go?

“Other than maybe the first power play that we had early in the game, we played well. I was looking for 60 consecutive minutes of play and got most of that probably. I wasn’t expecting eight goals.”

Sophomore goaltender Ava McNaughton made 18 saves on 20 Minnesota shots on goal, one in the first period that made it 2-1 and the other early in the third period that made it 7-2.

UW celebrates with pictures … and a surprise

Afterward the Badgers accepted the trophy from WCHA commissioner and posed for photos at center ice, although Edwards initially was caught off guard.

“I think I knew a couple days ago,” she said, “but during the game, I didn’t even think about it, so I was ready to get off the ice, and I see this big silver thing coming on.”

Wisconsin women’s hockey team has three games left in the regular season

Minnesota (22-7-1, 16-6-1) and Wisconsin wrap up their season series at noon Sunday. UW swept the series in Minneapolis in October, 5-0 and 4-3.

Saturday’s game was reminiscent of the first game of the Badgers’ January series against No. 2 Ohio State, when UW won, 6-0, at LaBahn. Then the teams played two nights later at Wrigley Field, where they tied and OSU won the shootout.

“We know they’re going to come all hard tomorrow,” Edwards said. “No one likes to get beat 8-2, especially the Gophers, when you’re rivals. So we just got to be ready for tomorrow. And I think if we play like that, we can beat any team.”

Then Wisconsin has a weekend off before finishing its WCHA regular season Feb. 21-22 against Bemidji State in Bemidji, Minnesota.

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Wisconsin

Sister Bay, Wisconsin: 2026 USA TODAY 10BEST Readers’ Choice Awards

Published

8 hours ago

March 3, 2026

Press Room

Sister Bay, Wisconsin: 2026 USA TODAY 10BEST Readers’ Choice Awards

Located in scenic Door County, Wisconsin, the town of Sister Bay is a waterfront town directly on Green Bay. Outdoor enthusiasts head to Sister Bay for its access to hiking trails, nature preserves, and water pursuits such as boating, fishing, and ice-skating during winter. The town hosts a number of seasonal festivals including a film fest, marina fest, outdoor concert series, and the Door County Festival of Fine Arts. The annual Roofing of the Goats Parade is a popular event tied to Al Johnson’s, a local restaurant known for goats that graze on its rooftop during summer months.

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Wisconsin

Vote: Who is Wisconsin High School Boys Basketball’s Top Guard of 2025-26?

Published

20 hours ago

March 2, 2026

Press Room

Vote: Who is Wisconsin High School Boys Basketball’s Top Guard of 2025-26?

With the action-packed Wisconsin high school boys basketball regular season completed and March Madness beginning, it’s time to take a look at some of the outstanding players and cast your vote for the best.

We began by looking at the most prolific individual scoring threats, talented 3-point shooters,strong rebounders, and top free-throw shooters so now it’s time to take a look at the high-caliber guards from throughout the state.

There are hundreds of high-caliber boys basketball players in Wisconsin, and these lists are not intended to be comprehensive.

Voting remains open until March 9 at 11:59 p.m. PT.

(Players are listed in alphabetical order and all nominees are leaders from the 2025-26 season as compiled by Bound.com, and WIAA; the poll is below the list of athletes)

Castillo is averaging 25.4 points per game with 5.4 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.1 steals for Greendale (18-6 overall record).

Collien is averaging 15 points per game with 4.1 rebounds and 2.0 assists for Oakfield (21-3 overall record).

Edwards is averaging 14.1 points per game with 7.1 rebounds and 6.6 assists for D.C. Everest (21-3 overall record).

Gray Jr. was averaging 24.3 points per game with 6.9 rebounds, 4.0 assists and 2.1 steals prior for West Allis Central (22-2 overall record).

Hereford is averaging 36.4 points per game with 9.0 rebounds, 5.6 assists, and 4.1 steals for Beloit Memorial (22-2 overall record).

Johnson is averaging 27.3 points per game with 8.5 rebounds, 4.6 assists, and 3.6 steals for Milwaukee Juneau (22-1 overall record).

Jones is averaging 23.3 points per game with 5.0 rebounds, 3.3 assists, and 2.6 steals for Germantown (15-9 overall record).

Kern is averaging 16 points per game with 6.2 rebounds and 3.0 assists for New Berlin West (21-3 overall record).

Kilgore is averaging 14.6 points per game with 7.0 rebounds, 3.6 assists, and 3.0 steals for Kewaunee (24-0 overall record).

Kohnen is averaging 16.3 points per game with 3.8 rebounds, 1.8 assists, and 1.3 steals for Slinger (20-4 overall record).

Knueppel is averaging 17.4 points per game with 7.4 rebounds, 3.9 assists, 1.9 blocks, and 1.4 steals for Wisconsin Lutheran (24-0 overall record).

Loose is averaging 18.2 points per game with 5.3 rebounds, 3.0 assists, and 2.3 steals for Port Washington (23-1 overall).

Manchester is averaging 35.8 points per game for Mount Horeb (19-5 overall record).

Platz is averaging 19.5 points per game with 7.2 rebounds and 2.3 assists, and 1.4 steals for Brookfield East (19-5 overall record).

Prochnow is averaging 21.3 points per game with 11.1 assists, 4.8 assists, and 3.2 steals for Reedsville (21-3 overall record).

Resch is averaging 21.3 points per game with 3.3 assists and 2.0 steals for Arrowhead (18-6 overall record).

Schultz is averaging 27.4 points per game with 6.5 rebounds, 3.8 assists, and 2.0 steals for Plymouth (17-7 overall record).

Schwalbach is averaging 15 points per game with 4.7 assists and 3.3 rebounds, and 1.7 steals for Kaukauna (21-3 overall).

Sweeney is averaging 15.5 points per game for Appleton North (20-4 overall record).

Vandenberg is averaging 13 points per game with 2.3 assists and 2.0 rebounds for Freedom (23-1 overall).

About Our Player Poll Voting
High School on SI voting polls are meant to be a fun, lighthearted way for fans to show support for their favorite athletes and teams. Our goal is to celebrate all of the players featured, regardless of the vote totals. Sometimes one athlete will receive a very large number of votes — even thousands — and that’s okay! The polls are open to everyone and are simply a way to build excitement and community around high school sports. Unless we specifically announce otherwise, there are no prizes or official awards for winning. The real purpose is to highlight the great performances of every athlete included in the poll.

— Jeff Hagenau | jeffreyhagenau@gmail.com

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